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Denarius - 125 BC (Grueber 124/103 BC) - Mint of Rome
MN ACILIVS BALBVS - Gens Acilia
Obv.: Helmeted head of Roma right; XVI in monogram before, BALBVS behind, ROMA below, within laurel wreath
Rev.:Jupiter & Victory in quadriga right; Macedonian shield below the horses. In ex. MN (in monogram) ACILI
Gs. 3,8 mm. 18,4
Craw. 271/1, Sear RCV .147, BMRRC 1019
Maxentius
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035 Ulászló I. (Wladislas I.)., King of Hungary, (1440-1444 A.D.) BI-Denarius, U-477.c., #01035 Ulászló I. (Wladislas I.)., King of Hungary, (1440-1444 A.D.) BI-Denarius, U-477.c., #01
avers: m WLADIS LAI RЄGIS, Patriarchal cross mint mark both sides W-O, border of dots.
reverse: S LADISLA VS RЄX, , border of dots.
exergue, mint mark: W/O//--, diameter: 15,0mm, weight: 0,75g, axis:7h,
mint: Hungary, Veszprém, by Pohl, date: 1440-1441 A.D. (by Pohl), ref: Unger-477.c., CNH-2-147, Huszár-602, Pohl-140-07,
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035 Ulászló I. (Wladislas I.)., King of Hungary, (1440-1444 A.D.) BI-Denarius, U-477.c., #02035 Ulászló I. (Wladislas I.)., King of Hungary, (1440-1444 A.D.) BI-Denarius, U-477.c., #02
avers: •m•WLADIS LAI•RЄGIS, Patriarchal cross mint mark both sides W-O, the border of dots.
reverse: •S•LADISLA VS RЄX, St.Ladislaus facing, standing, the border of dots.
exergue, mint mark: W/O//--, diameter: 14,5-16,0mm, weight: 0,57g, axis:1h,
mint: Hungary, Veszprém, by Pohl, date: 1440-1441 A.D. (by Pohl), ref: Unger-477.c., CNH-2-147, Huszár-602, Pohl-140-07,
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049 Septimius Severus (193-211 A.D.), Emesa, RIC IV-I 417, AR-Denarius, SAECVL FELICIT •, #1049 Septimius Severus (193-211 A.D.), Emesa, RIC IV-I 417, AR-Denarius, SAECVL FELICIT •, #1
avers: IMP CAE L SEP SEV PERT AVG COS II, Laureate bust right.
reverse: SAECVL FELICIT •, Crescent, seven stars above, dot (•) in the middle.
exergue: -/-//--, diameter: 16,5mm, weight: 2,47g, axis: 6h,
mint: Emesa, date: 194-95 A.D.,
ref: RIC IV-I 417, p-147, RSC 628a,
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051 Caracalla (196-198 A.D. Caesar, 198-217 A.D. Augustus ), Rome, RIC IV-I 268, AR-Denarius, P M TR P XVIII COS IIII P P, Pax standing half-left, #1051 Caracalla (196-198 A.D. Caesar, 198-217 A.D. Augustus ), Rome, RIC IV-I 268, AR-Denarius, P M TR P XVIII COS IIII P P, Pax standing half-left, #1
avers: ANTONINVS PIVS AVG GERM, Laureate head right.
reverse: P M TR P XVIII COS IIII P P, Pax standing half-left, holding branch and scepter.
exergue: -/-//--, diameter: 19,0-20,5mm, weight: 2,70g, axis: 1h,
mint: Rome, date: 215 A.D.,
ref: RIC IV-I 268, RSC 314, BMC 147,
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072 Gordianus-III. (238-244 A.D.), RIC IV-III 147, AR-Antoninianus, Rome, MARTEM-PROPVGNATOREM, Mars advancing right, #1072 Gordianus-III. (238-244 A.D.), RIC IV-III 147, AR-Antoninianus, Rome, MARTEM-PROPVGNATOREM, Mars advancing right, #1
avers: IMP-GORDIANVS-PIVS-FEL-AVG, Radiate bust right, draped and cuirassed.
revers: MARTEM-PROPVGNATOREM, Mars advancing right, holding spear and shield.
exerg:-/-//--, diameter: 21-25mm, weight: 5,21g, axis: 6h,
mint: Rome, date: 243-244 A.D., ref: RIC IV-III-147, p-31, C-160,
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111 Florianus (276-282 A.D.), T-4147, RIC V-I 010, Lyon, AE-Antoninianus, PROVIDENTIA AVG, -/-/III, Bust-D1, Providentia standing left, #1111 Florianus (276-282 A.D.), T-4147, RIC V-I 010, Lyon, AE-Antoninianus, PROVIDENTIA AVG, -/-/III, Bust-D1, Providentia standing left, #1
avers: IMP C M AN FLORIANVS AVG, Bust right, radiate, cuirassed and draped with paludamentum. (D1).
reverse: PROVIDENTIA AVG, Providentia standing left, holding baton in right hand and long scepter in left hand, at feet to left, globe, (Prov. 2b).
exergue: -/-/III, diameter: 19,5-22,5mm, weight: 3,40g, axes: 6h,
mint: Lyon, iss-3, off-3, date: 276 A.D., ref: RIC V-I 010, T-(Estiot)-4147, Bastien 148,
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112 Probus (276-282 A.D.), Egypt, Alexandria, Bi-Tetradrachm, Emmet 3989-Є, LЄ/-//--, Homonoia standing left, #1112 Probus (276-282 A.D.), Egypt, Alexandria, Bi-Tetradrachm, Emmet 3989-Є, LЄ/-//--, Homonoia standing left, #1
avers: A K M AVP ΠPOBOC CЄB, Laureated, cuirassed bust right.
reverse: Homonoia standing left, right arm raised; cornucopia in the left hand, LЄ left at foot.
exergue: LЄ/-//--, diameter: 18,0-19,8mm, weight: 6,89g, axes: 11h,
mint: Egypt, Alexandria, date: 279-280 A.D., LЄ Year 5.,
ref:
Emmet 3989-Є,
Milne 4598,
Geissen 3147,
Dattari 5534,
Kampmann-Ganschow 112.27,
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112 Probus (276-282 A.D.), Siscia, Alföldi 0042.0147, -/P//XXI, Bust E1/G, RIC V-II 711, AE-Antoninianus, PAX AVGVSTI, Pax standing left, #1 112 Probus (276-282 A.D.), Siscia, Alföldi 0042.0147, -/P//XXI, Bust E1/G, RIC V-II 711, AE-Antoninianus, PAX AVGVSTI, Pax standing left, #1
avers: IMP C M AVR PROBVS P F AVG, Radiate, helmeted and cuirassed bust left, holding spear and shield, (E1/G).
reverse: PAX AVGVSTI, Pax standing left, holding olive-branch and sceptre.
exergue: -/P//XXI, diameter:21-22,5 mm, weight:3,64g, axis:11h,
mint: Siscia, 7th. emission, date: 280A.D., ref: RIC V-II 711, p-, C-, Alföldi 0042.0147,
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113 Carus (282-283 A.D.), AE-Antoninianus, RIC V-II 106C, Siscia, */II//XXI, RESTITVT ORBIS, Emperor and Orbis, #1113 Carus (282-283 A.D.), AE-Antoninianus, RIC V-II 106C, Siscia, */II//XXI, RESTITVT ORBIS, Emperor and Orbis, #1
avers: IMP-C-M-AVR-CARVS-P-F-AVG, Radiate, draped, cuirassed bust right.
revers: RESTITVT-OR-BIS, Carus standing left on right, holding globe and scepter, facing Orbis to left, holding wreath.
exerg: */II//XXI, diameter: 21-23mm, weight: 3,56g, axes: 0h,
mint: Siscia, date: 282 A.D., ref: RIC V-II 106C, p-147,
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113 Carus (282-283 A.D.), AE-Antoninianus, RIC V-II 106C, Siscia, */P//XXI, RESTITVT ORBIS, Emperor and Orbis, #1113 Carus (282-283 A.D.), AE-Antoninianus, RIC V-II 106C, Siscia, */P//XXI, RESTITVT ORBIS, Emperor and Orbis, #1
avers: IMP-C-M-AVR-CARVS-P-F-AVG, Radiate, draped, cuirassed bust right.
revers: RESTITVT-OR-BIS, Carus standing left on right, holding globe and scepter, facing Orbis to left, holding wreath.
exerg: */P//XXI, diameter: 21-22,5mm, weight: 3,40g, axes: 0h,
mint: Siscia, date: 282 A.D., ref: RIC V-II 106C, p-147,
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113 Carus (282-283 A.D.), AE-Antoninianus, RIC V-II 110K, Siscia, -/A//SMSXXI, CONSECRATIO AVG, Altar, Scarce!113 Carus (282-283 A.D.), AE-Antoninianus, RIC V-II 110K, Siscia, -/A//SMSXXI, CONSECRATIO AVG, Altar, Scarce!
avers: DIVO-CARO-PARTHICO, Radiate head right.(K)
revers: CONSECRATIO-AVG, Altar.
exerg: -/A//SMSXXI, diameter: mm, weight: g, axes: h,
mint: Siscia, date: Posthumous A.D., ref: RIC V-II 110K , p-147, Scarce!
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113 Carus (282-283 A.D.), AE-Antoninianus, RIC V-II 111K in, Siscia, -/-//XXIA, CONSECRATIO AVG, Lighted Altar, #1, Rare!!!113 Carus (282-283 A.D.), AE-Antoninianus, RIC V-II 111K in, Siscia, -/-//XXIA, CONSECRATIO AVG, Lighted Altar, #1, Rare!!!
avers:- DIVO-CARO-PARTHICO, Radiate head right.
revers:- CONSECRATIO-AVG, Lighted Altar with dots in each four corners.
exerg: -/-//XXIA, diameter: 20,5-21,5mm, weight: 4,02g, axes:11h,
mint: Siscia, 5th. emission,date: A.D., ref: RIC V-II 111K, p-147, Rare !!!
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113 Carus (282-283 A.D.), AE-Antoninianus, RIC V-II 111K in, Siscia, -/-//XXIA, CONSECRATIO AVG, Lighted Altar, #2, Rare!!!113 Carus (282-283 A.D.), AE-Antoninianus, RIC V-II 111K in, Siscia, -/-//XXIA, CONSECRATIO AVG, Lighted Altar, #2, Rare!!!
avers:- DIVO-CARO-PARTHICO, Radiate head right.
revers:- CONSECRATIO-AVG, Lighted Altar with dots in each four corners.
exerg: -/-//XXIA, diameter: 20,5-21,5mm, weight: 3,18g, axes: 5h,
mint: Siscia, 5th. emission,date: A.D., ref: RIC V-II 111K, p-147, Rare !!!
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144 Hannibalianus (335-337 A.D.), Constantinoplis, RIC VII 147, AE-3, -/-//CONSS, SECVRITAS PVBLICA, Euphrates seated right on ground, Very Rare!!144 Hannibalianus (335-337 A.D.), Constantinoplis, RIC VII 147, AE-3, -/-//CONSS, SECVRITAS PVBLICA, Euphrates seated right on ground, Very Rare!!
avers: F L HANNIBALLIANO REGI (11b, A4), Bare-headed, draped, cuirassed bust right.
reverse: SECVRITAS PVBLICA (no break in the legend !!!), Euphrates seated right on ground, holding sceptre, overturned urn at his side, from which waters flow, reed in background.
exergue: -/-//CONSS, diameter: 15mm, weight: 1,32g, axis: 6h,
mint: Constantinoplis, date: 336-337 A.D., ref: RIC VII 147-p-589, Very Rare!!
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1873-M Victoria Young Head Gold SovereignAustralia, Victoria (1837-1901), Gold Sovereign, 1873-M, Bentley 760 (this coin), McDonald 147, QM 79 R, SCWC KM 7, Friedberg 16, Marsh 95, SCBC 3857, gEF-aUNC, lightly toned, with proof-like underlying brilliance, lightly bag marked, M below nearly touches neck, first G in legend die flawed to rim, trace of hair spur in upper curve of tail, dragon claws all present of 4/4 arrangement, the last a stub claw, edge milled, weight 8.0g (AGW 0.2359oz), composition 0.917 Au, 0.083 Cu, diameter 22.05mm, thickness 1.52mm, die axis 180°, Melbourne mint, 1873; obverse VICTORIA D: G: BRITANNIAR: REG: F: D: (Victoria, by the Grace of God, Queen of the Britains, Defender of the Faith), third young filleted head left, hair bound with double fillet, waved and pulled back in ponytail ending in single corkscrew curl at back, W.W. raised and buried in truncation for engraver William Wyon, mint mark M below, toothed border surrounding; reverse St. George, nude but for crested Attic helmet, paludamentum fastened in front by fibula billowing behind and high-topped boots (calcei equestri), on horse rearing right, with long tail, ending in three strands, with one spur higher up at curve, holding bridle in left hand and short sword in right, looking down, trampling and slaying prostrate dragon to lower right, with broken lance in its side, looking back and up at St. George, broken lance on ground-line to left, tiny WWP raised under lance for Master of the Mint, William Wellesley-Pole, 1873 in exergue, tiny B.P. raised to upper right of exergue for engraver Benedetto Pistrucci, toothed border surrounding; from the Roger Belmar Collection; ex Sovereign Rarities (24 Apr 2020); ex Bentley Collection, Part II, Baldwin's auction 76 (27 Sep 2012), lot 760; ex Randy Weir Numismatics, Unionville, Ontario, Canada (12 Nov 1990); scarce; £475.00.Serendipity
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275 AD - Tacitus - 275-276 AD - PaxIMPCMCLATACITVSAVG - Radiate, draped, and cuirassed bust right
PAXAVG - Pax striding left, holding scepter and branch, Q in exergue
Ticinium Mint, References RIC-147, Cohen 67
Nicely silvered, with beatiful dark toning, much nicer in handjimwho523
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A102-05 - CARO ( Set. 282 - Jul. 283 D.C.)AE Antoniniano 21 x 22 mm 2.7 gr.
Anv: "IMP C M AVR CARVS P F AVG" - Busto radiado, con coraza y Paludamentum (capote militar) sobre ella, viendo a derecha.
Rev: "RESTITVT ORBIS" - Pax/Orbis Terrarum de pié a derecha presenta una corona al Emperador con hábito militar, portando globo en la mano de su brazo derecho extendido y largo cetro vertical en mano izquierda, de pié a izquierda. "*/P" en campo centro y "XXI" en exergo.
Acuñada 1ra. Emisión 282 D.C.
Ceca: Siscia (Off.1ra.) - Sisak Croacia.
Referencias: RIC Vb #106 P.147, Sear RCTV III #12179 P.495, Sear RCTV '88 #3405, Cohen VI #71 P.358/9, DVM #12 P.263, Hunter #21, Pink p.41mdelvalle
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AD 275-276 Tacitus PaxTacitus AE Antoninianus 275-276 AD
IMP CM CLA TACITVS AVG - Radiate, Draped and curaissed bust right
PAX AVG, Q in exe. - Pax striding left, holding scepter and branch
Ticinum mint, 3.10 gms, 22 mm
Reference: RIC 147, Cohen 67jimwho523
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Antoninus Pius, RIC 733, As of AD 143-144 (Great Sow)Æ As (8.87g, Ø24.5mm, 12h). Rome mint. Struck 143-144 AD.
Obv.: ANTONINVS AVG PIVS P P TR P COS III, laureate head right.
Rev.: IMPERATOR II (around) S C (in ex.), Great Sow, seated right under oak suckling her young; in front, two more.
RIC 733; BMC 1624; Cohen 450; 942
ex iNumis, Paris
This issue belongs to a series minted in preparation of the 900th anniversary, on April 21st, AD 147, of the founding of Rome. This series depict scenes from ancient Roman legends.
Charles S
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Antoninus Pius, RIC 772, Sestertius of AD 145-147 (Honos) Æ Sestertius (22.8g, Ø 31mm, 10h), Rome mint, Struck AD 145-147, Rome
Obv.: ANTONINVS AVG PI-VS P P TR P, laurate head of Antoninus Pius facing right
Rev.: HONORI AVG COS IIII (around), S C (in field), Honos standing left, holding branch and cornucopiae.
RIC 772 (S); Cohen 414; Strack 983
ex Numismatik Lanz (2009)
Charles S
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Antoninus Pius, RIC 822 , As of AD 145-147 (Pax)Æ As (8.6g, Ø 25mm, 12h), minted AD 145-147, Rome
Obv.: ANTONINVS AVG PIVS P P TR P COS IIII, laurate head right
Rev.: PAX AVG around S C in field, Pax, draped, standing left, setting fire to pile of arms with torch and holding cornucopiae.
RIC 822 (scarce); Cohen 593; Strack 996; BMC 1752
ex Mediterranean coins (eBay, 2001)Charles S
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Argos, Argolis100/90 - 50 B.C.
Bronze Dichalkon
3.69 gm, 17 mm
Obv.: Head of Hera right, wearing stephane
Rev.: Pillar fountain; monogram to left, wreath to right.
BMC 10, p. 147, 146
[BCD Peloponnesos 1158.3; SNG Copenhagen 76]Jaimelai
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Ariobarzanes III Athena Cappadocian KingdomAriobarzanes III Eusebes Philoromaios, Cappadocian Kingdom, Silver Drachm, Mazaka-Eusebeia (Kayseri, Turkey) mint, 3.549g, 17.1mm, die axis 0o, 44 - 43 B.C., Simonetta p. 44, 1b; BMC Galatia p.
42, 1; Simonetta Collection p. 147, 2; SNGvA 6326 var. (monogram); HGC 7 852 (R2); SNG Cop -,
OBV: head right, with short hair and beard
REV: BAΣIΛEΩΣ APIOBAPZANOY EYΣEBOYΣ KAI ΦIΛOΠΩMIOY, Athena Nikephoros standing left, Nike offering wreath in right hand,
spear and grounded shield behind in left, star in crescent with horns up lower inner left,
monogram upper inner right, Θ (year 9) in exergue (off flan)
RARE
Ariobarzanes was an ally of Pompey, but after their defeat Julius Caesar received him well and kept his position.
He later refused to aid Cassius. Caesar's assassins declared him a traitor, invaded Cappadocia and executed him.
EX: Errett Bishop Collection
EX: Forvm Ancient Coins
SRukke
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Asia Minor, Kilikia, Eirenopolis-Neronias, GallienusGallienus
Kilikia, Eirenopolis-Neronias
AE28, AD 258-59
Obv.: ΠOΥ ΛIK ΓAΛΛIHNOC, Laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right
Rev.: IΡHNOΠOΛE ZS, Cybele seated right, resting arm on tympanum, lion seated to either side
AE, 15.03g, 28mm
Ref.: SNG Von Aulock 5600, Karbach 147, SNG Levante 1629shanxi
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Billion tetradrachm; Maximianus, laureate, draped and cuirassed bust right obv; Nike flying right, wreath in hand, palm over shoulder in left rev; 6.739g, 19.6mmBillon tetradrachm, Milne 4860, Dattari 5957, Curtis 2098, Kampmann 120.29, Geissen 3295, Emmett 4147, VF, 6.739g, 19.6mm, 0o, Alexandria mint, 29 Aug 287 - 28 Aug 288 A.D.; obverse "A K M A OUA MAXIMIANO"C C"EB", laureate, draped and cuirassed bust right; reverse Nike flying right, wreath in right hand, palm over shoulder in left, L - "G" (year 3) flanking across field
It's like I fell in love at first sight or something. I couldn't stop coming back to this coin. It's my early birthday gift to myself. Would've bought another too, but I JUST found out my front left tire has a slow leak, so I need to start saving for new tires. BAH! With the sale I couldn't pass this one up though, so now it's mine!
Maximian, you were a great soldier and a crazy old man. I can't wait till you and Nike get here!
[Photo and description graciously taken from the FORVM, as I just hit the "buy" button like, five minutes ago!] EvaJupiterSkies
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CÁC II. 20.11.1.1./c1.02./19., Anonymous III. (Géza II., King of Hungary, (1141-1162 A.D.)?), AR-Denarius, H-157, CNH I.-147, U-073, #01CÁC II. 20.11.1.1./c1.02./19., Anonymous III. (Géza II., King of Hungary, (1141-1162 A.D.)?), AR-Denarius, H-157, CNH I.-147, U-073, #01
avers: Pattern of crescents and circles around the cross with rhombus in the center and crosses at the ends, two vertical lines by the rhombus; border of dots.,
reverse: Four crescents and four dots around cross; line border.
exergue: -/-//--, diameter: 18,6mm, weight: 0,29g, axis: 0h,
mint: Esztergom, date: A.D., ref: Huszár-157, CNH I.-147, Unger-073,
Kiss-Toth, Sigla: 20.11.1.1./c1.02./19.,
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Domitian, RIC II-147 RomeAR Denarius
Rome mint, 90 A.D.
19mm, 3.39g
RIC II-147, RSCv.2-261
Obverse:
IMP CAES DOMIT AVG GERM P M TR P VIIII
Laureate head right
Reverse:
IMP XXI COS XV CENS P P P
Minerva advancing right, brandishing javelin and holding shield.Will J
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EB0729 Diocletian / JupiterDiocletian 284-305, AE Antoninianus, Lyons mint, 290-291 AD.
Obverse: IMP DIOCLETIANVS AVG, radiate cuirassed bust right.
Reverse: IOVI AVGG Jupiter standing left holding Victory on globe and sceptre, eagle at foot left. Mintmark A.
References: RIC V 28; Cohen 147, Bastien 315.
Diameter: 22mm, Weight: 4.267g.EB
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Egypt, Alexandria, 027 Traianus (98-117 A.D.), AR-Tetradrachm, RPC III 4147, L/E//--, Eagle standing right, #1Egypt, Alexandria, 027 Traianus (98-117 A.D.), AR-Tetradrachm, RPC III 4147, L/E//--, Eagle standing right, #1
avers: AYT KAIΣ NEP TPAIAN ΣEB ΓEPM, Laureate head right.
reverse: No legend, Eagle standing right, wings closed, L-E across field.
exergue: L/E//--, diameter: 23,0mm, weight: 12,93g, axis: 0h,
mint: Egypt, Alexandria, date: Dated year (L-E) Year 5 = 101-102 A.D., ref:
RPC III 4147,
Emmet 0361-E,
Milne 0560,
Geissen 0450-0451,
Dattari 0705,
Kampmann-Ganschow 027.31,
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Egypt, Alexandria, 112 Probus (276-282 A.D.), Bi-Tetradrachm, Emmet 3989-Є, LЄ/-//--, Homonoia standing left, #1Egypt, Alexandria, 112 Probus (276-282 A.D.), Bi-Tetradrachm, Emmet 3989-Є, LЄ/-//--, Homonoia standing left, #1
avers: A K M AVP ΠPOBOC CЄB, Laureated, cuirassed bust right.
reverse: Homonoia standing left, right arm raised; cornucopia in the left hand, LЄ left at foot.
exergue: LЄ/-//--, diameter: 18,0-19,8mm, weight: 6,89g, axes: 11h,
mint: Egypt, Alexandria, date: 279-280 A.D., LЄ Year 5.,
ref:
Emmet 3989-Є,
Milne 4598,
Geissen 3147,
Dattari 5534,
Kampmann-Ganschow 112.27,
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Faustina Senior Consecratio Vesta Diva Faustina Senior (wife of Antoninus Pius), AD 147, DIVA FAVSTINA, draped bust right, rev CONSECRATIO S-C, Vesta standing left, sacrificing out of patera over lighted altar and holding long torch mattpat
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Gordian III AntoninianusSilver antoninianus, RIC IV 147, RSC IV 160, aVF, Rome mint, 241 - 243 A.D.; obverse IMP GORDIANVS PIVS FEL AVG, radiate, draped and cuirassed bust right, from behind; reverse MARTEM PROPVGNATOREM, Mars advancing right, helmeted, transverse spear in right, shield in left, cloak flying behind;Philoromaos
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Gordian III, 238 - 244 ADObv: IMP GORDIANVS PIVS FEL AVG, radiate, draped and cuirassed bust of Gordian III facing right.
Rev: MARTEM PROPVGNATOREM, Mars advancing right with a shield and a traverse spear.
Silver Antoninianus, Rome mint, 243 - 244 AD
4.6 grams, 21 mm, 180°
RIC Viii 147, RSC 160, S8624, VM 29Matt Inglima
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Gordianus III (Marcus Antoninus Gordianus) (Caesar 238 A.D.; Augustus 238-244 A.D.)RIC IV part 3 147, RSC 160, Cohen 160, Van Meter 29
AR Antoninianus, 4.53 g., 22.35 mm max., 180°
Rome mint, struck early Autumn 243 to Summer 244 A.D. (fifth issue)
Obv: IMP GORDIANVS PIVS FEL AVG, radiate draped and cuirassed bust facing right
Rev: MARTEM PROPVGNATOREM, Mars, helmeted, advancing right holding transverse spear and shield, cloak flying behind.
Dedicated to Mars the Defender (or Champion), in the accusativus acclamationis (= accusative of acclamation) case.
RIC rarity C
Stkp
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Gratian Siscia RIC 14cGratian, Siscia, 367 - 383 AD, 17mm, 3.04g, RIC IX pg 147, 14c
OBV: D N GRATIANVS P F AVG, pearl-diademed, draped and cuirassed bust right
REV: GLORIA RO-MANORVM, Gratian standing right, holding labarum inscribed with Chi-rho and holding captive by hair,
M in left field, star over P to right, ΔSISC in ex.
SRukke
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Hartill CCC 21.85, Hartill QC 3.01, Schjöth 1335, Fisher’s Ding 2147, Zeno #309648The Southern Ming and Qing Rebels: The San Fan Rebellion; Wu Sangui (1674-1678)
1 cash/wen (cast bronze); 3.86 g., 24.32 mm. max.
Obv: Li Yong (= Profitable Use) tong bao 利用通寶; closed head two-dot tong 通.
Rev: Blank
The San Fan, or Three Feudatories, were Ming commanders who joined forces with the Manchus and were rewarded with control of provinces, which they ruled as virtually autonomous kingdoms. Wu Sangui was awarded control of Yunnan. However, in 1673 the Beijing court decided to abolish the feudatories. Wu rose in rebellion in December 1673, and proclaimed the start of the new Da Zhou Dynasty. He proclaimed himself emperor in March 1678 but died of dysentery that October.
Hartill CCC rarity 15, Hartill QC rarity 8Stkp
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hhj8.26.13.08_3Elagabalus
Nicopolis
Obv: AV K M AVP ANTΩNINOC, laureate, draped and cuirassed bust right, seen from behind.
Rev:NIKOΠOΛITΩN ΠPOC ICTPON, Artemis in short cloak advancing right, bow in left hand and drawing arrow from quiver with right hand, hound at her feet.
16 mm, 2.94 gms
Hristova-Hoeft-Jekov 8.26.13.8
Ex Gorny & Mosch, Auction 147, lot 2681 (part of)Charles M
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Italian States. Aquileia, Patriarchate.Bernardi 22, Biaggi 147, CNI VI p. 13, 17-27
AR denaro (nominal weight .1.03 gr. but actually ranging from .86-1.31 gr., .847); .77 gr., 20.32 mm. max., 0â—¦.
Struck ca. 1269 under Patriarch Gregorio di Montelongo (1251-1269).
Obv: •GREGO - RIV'•PA•, Patriarch seated facing, holding cross-tipped scepter and gospel.
Rev: •AQVI -- LEGIA, Eagle standing left, head rght, with wings displayed; pellets flanking head.
Bernardi rarity R.Stkp
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Marcus Aurelius Liberalitas RIC 1147 SestertiusMarcus Aurelius, Rome, Sestertius, 174 - 175 AD, 29.81mm, 20.5g, RIC 1147, Cohen 419
OBV: M ANTONINVS AVG GERM TRP XXIX, laureate head right
REV: LIBERALITAS AVG VI IMP VII COS III S-C, Liberalitas standing left, holding abacus and cornucopiae
SRukke
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Maximian LI Nike Potin Tetradrachm 20mm
ob: MAΞIMI | ANOC CEB
laureate draped and cuirassed bust right
rx: LI
Nike advancing right holding wreath
Curtis 2105, Emmett 4147, SNG Hunt -; Milne 5180, BMC 2585, Zoega 63, Dattari 5972
rusty brown patina rennrad12020
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Maximianus Herculius, AD 286-305Potin Tetradrachm, 22mm, 3.9g, 12h; Alexandria mint, AD 287/288.
Obv.: A K M OVA MAΞIMIANOC CEB; Laureate, draped, cuirassed bust right, seen from behind/
Rev.: Nike advancing right, palm in left hand over shoulder, wreath upward in right; L / Γ across fields.
Reference: Emmett 4147, p.212 / 16-379-35John Anthony
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MAXIMIANUS Tetradrachm Emmett 4147, NikeOBVERSE: A K M OVA MAXIMIANOC CEB, laureate, draped and cuirassed bust right
REVERSE: L-Xi, Nike advancing right holding wreath and palm branch
7.4g, 18mm
Struck at Alexandria,Egypt, 292-293 AD
Legatus
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Moesia inferior, Nikopolis ad Istrum, 14. Septimius Severus, HrHJ (2018) 8.14.20.38 #2Septimius Severus, AD 193-211
AE - AE 17, 3.20g, 16.78mm, 225°
obv. AV [KAI] CE - CEVHROC
Laureate head r.
rev. Hermes, nude, chlamys over l. arm, stg. frontal, head l., holding kerykeion in l. arm and in extended r. hand purse
ref. a) AMNG I/1, 1373 var. (has ICTR)
b) Varbanov 2361
c) Hristova/Hoeft/Jekov (2020) No. 8.,14.20.39 #2
S+, dark green patina
Pedigree:
ex Gorny&Mosch 147, Lot 2681
Jochen
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Moesia inferior, Nikopolis ad Istrum, 18. Caracalla, HrHJ (2020) 8.18.01.32 #2Caracalla, AD 198-217
AE - AE 16, 2.65g, 15.95mm, 0°
obv. AV KEC - [AN]TWN
Bust, draped and cuirassed, laureate, r.
rev. NIKOPOLIT PROC ICT
Eagle, with half open wings, stg. half left on thunderbolt , head with wreath in beak turned r.
ref. a) AMNG I/1, 1602 var. (without thunderbolt)
b) Varbanov 2945 var. (= AMNG 1602)
c) Hristova/Hoeft/Jekov (2020) No. 8.18.1.29 #2
F+, dark green patina
Pedigree:
ex Gorny&Mosch 147, Lot 2681
Jochen
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Nero, RIC 147, Sestertius of AD 64 (Triumphal arch)Æ Sestertius (27.30g, Ø33mm, 6h), Rome mint, struck AD 64.
Obv.: NERO CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG GER P M TR P IMP P P, laureate head of Nero facing right with aegis.
Rev.: S C (in field), Triumphal arch is surmounted by a quadriga facing with, standing on the left, Pax and on the right, winged Victory. At the angles of the entablature are soldiers. The front piers of the arch are decorated with sculptures in three tiers of panels; in the niche on the left is a statue of Mars.
RIC 147; Cohen 308; BMC 185; Sear 2000 (RCV) 1962var.; Foss (RHC) 67:14
Nero erected a triumphal arch on the Capitoline Hill while the Parthian war was in progress in Mesopotamia and Armenia, with Corbulo capturing the Armenian capital Artaxata in AD 58. The arch was rededicated or completely dismantled after Nero's death in AD 68, and this monument is only known from coins.Charles S
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Otacilia Severa, Wife of Philip the ArabObv: M OTICIL SEVERA AVG, diademed, draped bust of Octicilia facing right, on a crescent.
Rev: CONCORDIA AVGG, Concordia seated left, holding a patera in her right hand and a double cornucopia in her left.
Silver Antoninianus, Rome mint, 245 – 247 AD
4.7 grams, 24 mm, 180°
RIC IViii Philip I 125c, RSC 4, S9147, VM 16Matt Inglima
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Pella, Macedon, AE20, ΠΕΛ-ΛΗΣAE20
Greek Provincial
Pella, Macedon
Issued: 187 - 131BC
20.0mm 9.57gr 0h
O: NO LEGEND; Helmeted head of Athena Parthenos, right.
R: ΠΕΛ-ΛΗΣ; Bull grazing, right.
Moushmov 6453; SNG Cop 266ff, Ref. Sear, GCV V-I, p. 147, 1443.
paydav 271776980884
2/22/15 4/30/17Nicholas Z
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RIC 0688 VespasianAR Denarius, 2.84g
Rome mint, 74 AD
Obv: IMP CAESAR in exergue; Vespasian stg. r., with branch and sceptre, in quadriga r.
Rev: VESP AVG across field; Victory on prow r., with wreath and palm
RIC 688 (R). BMC 147. RSC 569. BNC 121. Hendin 1484 corr. (rev. legend).
Ex Nomos Obolos 4, 21 February 2016, lot 575. Ex GH Collection. Ex Superior Galleries, The Moreira sale, Part II, 10-11 December 1988, lot 2374.
A major feature of Vespasian's coinage is in its use of antiquarian styled types and recycled ones from previous eras. K. Butcher and M. Ponting in The Metallurgy of Roman Silver Coinage have shown that a big component of Vespasian's silver bullion consisted of recycled denarii from the republic and early empire. Vespasian's moneyers were removing the older worn coinage and replacing them with brand new coins and in the process keeping some of the familiar reverse designs that the Roman public had grown accustomed to.
With that in mind, this very rare coin which copies not only the reverse design from a denarius of Octavian, it also copies the obverse. The only change is with the reverse legend VESP AVG to indicate Vespasian's authority. Being undated, it is difficult to correctly place in the series. RIC assigns it to 74 AD based on the legends. D. Hendin to 71-72, just after Vespasian and Titus' joint triumph for the Jewish War.
This denarius is so rare I have only been able to locate six other examples, all of which are in public collections: BM 3 examples (one plated), Paris (BNC 121, obv die match with mine), Berlin (rev die match with mine), and ANA NY. Curtis Clay has kindly informed me of several other examples offered at auction: "Glendining, 1952, Ryan Part 5, part of lot 2147, not illustrated, 'only fine but rare.' Perhaps the same coin as Trau Sale, 1935, lot 625, pl. 8: a worn example. Stack's, Knobloch, May 1980, lot 300. VF, but small edge chip (the ANA NY coin). Leu, April 1982, lot 327, VF."
I think the RIC frequency rating of 'rare' really underestimates the rarity of the type.
Fantastic old cabinet toning on a large 20mm flan. David Atherton
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RIC 1511 Titus as Caesar [Vespasian]Æ25, 6.67g
Ephesus (?) mint, 77-78 AD
Obv: T CAESAR IMPER PONT; Head of Titus, laureate, bearded, r.
Rev: TR POT COS VI CENSOR; S C in exergue; Eagle stg. l. on thunderbolt, head r.
RIC 1511 (R). BMC p. 221 ‡. BNC 893. RPC 1480 (3 spec.).
Ex Bucephalus 15, 11 February 2023, lot 662.
Late in Vespasian's reign a rare series of orichalcum bronze coins were struck in Asia Minor at an unknown mint. Although imperial in appearance, the style, weight system, and metal used all point to a mint other than Rome. Due to their extreme rarity today, they could not have been struck for any great length of time (the date cannot be narrowed down any further than Vespasian's COS VIII, 77-78 AD). The types consist of ones variously copied from either Rome or local provincial issues (such as this Syrian inspired eagle on thunderbolt). A stylistic similarity with the earlier 'o' mint denarii possibly struck at Ephesus has been noted by both RIC and RPC. Admittedly, the link to the infamous 'o' mint is tenuous at best, but it is the most sound theory proposed so far (M. Grant, 'Asses of Orichalcum', Centennial Publication of the American Numismatic Study, pp. 285-302). Further, metal analyses by Carradice and Cowell ('The minting of Roman Imperial Bronze Coins for Circulation in the East: Vespasian to Trajan', NC 147, pp. 26-50) strongly supports an Asia Minor origin for the issue. David Atherton
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RIC 1513 Titus as Caesar [Vespasian]Æ25.5, 8.02g
Ephesus (?) mint, 77-78 AD
Obv: T CAESAR IMPER PONT; Head of Titus, laureate, bearded, r.
Rev: TR POT COS VI CENSOR; S C in field; Mars adv. l., with spear and shield
RIC 1513 (R2). BMC -. BNC -. RPC 1482 (1 spec.).
Ex Harlan J Berk BBS 225, 30 November 2023, lot 95. Ex Curtis Clay Collection. Ex Ritter List 46, August 1996, no. 654.
Late in Vespasian's reign a rare series of orichalcum bronze coins were struck in Asia Minor at an unknown mint. Although imperial in appearance, the style, weight system, and metal used all point to a mint other than Rome. Due to their extreme rarity today, they could not have been struck for any great length of time (the date cannot be narrowed down any further than Vespasian's COS VIII, 77-78 AD). The types consist of ones variously copied from either Rome or local provincial issues. A stylistic similarity with the earlier 'o' mint denarii possibly struck at Ephesus has been noted by both RIC and RPC. Admittedly, the link to the infamous 'o' mint is tenuous at best*, but it is the most sound theory proposed so far (M. Grant, 'Asses of Orichalcum', Centennial Publication of the American Numismatic Study, pp. 285-302). Further, metal analyses by Carradice and Cowell ('The minting of Roman Imperial Bronze Coins for Circulation in the East: Vespasian to Trajan', NC 147, pp. 26-50) strongly supports an Asia Minor origin for the issue. Only one specimen of this Mars type is cited by both RIC and RPC from Oxford. Missing from the BM and Paris collections.
*One objection to this link is the fact the 'o' mint series is riddled with mules and mixed up titles, something we don't see with the bronze issue.David Atherton
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RIC 5a, p.147, 192a - Gallienus, FidesGallienus
Antoninian, Rome Mint
Obv: GALLIENVS AVG, Head of Gallienus, radiate, right
Rev: FIDES MILITVM, Fides, draped, standing left, holding ensign in right hand and sceptre in left hand, N in right field
AE, 2.43g, 20.5x22.3mm
RIC Va, p 147, 192a
shanxi
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RIC 9, p.147, 14c, Gratianus, Emperor, captiveGratianus (AD 367-383)
Siscia Mint
Obv: DN GRATIANVUS P F AVG, Bust of Gratian, pearl-diademed, draped and cuirassed, right
Rev: GLORIA ROMANORVUM, Emperor advancing right, dragging captive with right hand and holding labarum in left, M/(*/P)//ΓSISC
RIC 9, p.147, 14c / Kankelfitz 5
shanxi
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Ric-147 Gordian III - MarsIMP GORDIANVS PIVS FEL AVG - Radiate, draped, and cuirassed bust right
MARTEM PROPVGNATOREM - Mars hastening right, holding spear and shield
Ric-147, Cohen-160
nicely centered, full flan, strong strike. small flan defect on rev.jimwho523
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ROMAN EMPIRE - GallienusROMAN EMPIRE - Gallienus (AD 253-268) AE Antoninianus. Obv: GALLIENVS AVG - Radiate head right Rev: FORTVNA REDVX - Fortuna standing left, holding a rudder on a globe and cornucopia Right field: "STIGMA, or a long S" - Rome mint: AD 262-263 = RIC Vi, p. 147, 193K; Cohen 270, 3.23 g. dpaul7
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Roman Empire, Agrippa, Struck c.A.D.38 under Caligula.Agrippa, 43–12 BC.
AE as, Roma mint, Struck c.A.D 38.
Obv. M AGRIPPA L F COS III, head of Agrippa left, wearing rostral crown.
Rev. SC, Neptune standing half-left, arms draped, holding small dolphin and grounded trident.
RIC I : 58.
21,14g, 28mm.
Provenance: Numismatik Lanz, Auction 147, lot 254.
 
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Roman Empire, Gordianus-III. (238-244 A.D.), AR-Antoninianus, RIC IV-III 147, Rome, MARTEM-PROPVGNATOREM, Mars advancing right,072 Gordianus-III. (238-244 A.D.), AR-Antoninianus, RIC IV-III 147, Rome, MARTEM-PROPVGNATOREM, Mars advancing right,
avers:- IMP-GORDIANVS-PIVS-FEL-AVG, Radiate bust right, draped and cuirassed.
revers:- MARTEM-PROPVGNATOREM, Mars advancing right, holding spear and shield.
exerg: , diameter: 21-25mm, weight: 5,21g, axis: 6h,
mint: Rome, date: 243-244 A.D., ref: RIC IV-III-147, p-31, C-160,
Q-001quadrans
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Sinatrukes, 77 - 70 BC, or Orodes I., 80-75 BCAR dr., 4,06gr, 18,7mm; Sellwood 34.6var., Shore 147, Sunrise --;
mint: Rhagai, axis: 12h;
obv.: bust, left, w/tiara (3 rows of pellets, flour de lys as side ornament, row of double pellets on stalks on crest, long ear flaps) and diadem w/knot and 2 broad ribbons; mustache, short beard; earring, torque; cuirass; anchor in right field was removed from die; dotted border 12 to 16h;
rev.: archer, right, on throne, w/bow in one hand; 6-line legend: BAΣIΛEΩΣ (M)EΓAΛ(oV) APΣAK(oV) (E)VEPΓEToV(Σ) (to be read from the inside) EΠIΦANoV ΦIΛEΛΛΗNoΣ; exergual line; Schatz
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TRAJAN Denarius, RIC 147, Trophy of ArmsOBV: IMP TRAIANO AVG GER DAC P M TR P, laureate bust right
REV: COS V P P SPQR OPTIMO PRINC, trophy of arms mounted on stump
2.68g 19mm
Minted at Rome, 107 ADLegatus
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Unidentified Anonymous As Anonymous As
Head of Janus, I above / Prow of Galley, ROMA below, I before
Previous owner attributed it as Syd 147, but I have not been able to confirm this.
RR0027Sosius
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[905a] Marcus Aurelius, 7 March 161 - 17 March 180 A.D.MARCUS AURELIUS AE [b[Sestertius. RIC 1222. 30mm, 24.5g. Struck at Rome, 177 AD. Obverse: M ANTONINUS AVG GERM SARM TR P XXXI, laureate head right; Reverse: LIBERALITAS AVG VII IMP VIIII COS III P P, Liberalitas standing left holding coin counter & cornucopia, SC in fields. Nice portrait. Ex Incitatus. Photo courtesy of Incitatus.
De Imperatoribus Romanis: An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Rulers and their Families
Marcus Aurelius (A.D. 161-180)
Herbert W. Benario
Emory University
Introduction and Sources
The Vita of the emperor in the collection known as the Historia Augusta identifies him in its heading as Marcus Antoninus Philosophus, "Marcus Antoninus the Philosopher." Toward the end of the work, the following is reported about him, sententia Platonis semper in ore illius fuit, florere civitates si aut philosophi imperarent aut imperantes philosopharentur (27.7), "Plato's judgment was always on his lips, that states flourished if philosophers ruled or rulers were philosophers." It is this quality of Marcus' character which has made him a unique figure in Roman history, since he was the first emperor whose life was molded by, and devoted to, philosophy (Julian was the second and last). His reign was long and troubled, and in some ways showed the weaknesses of empire which ultimately led to the "Decline and Fall," yet his personal reputation, indeed his sanctity, have never failed of admirers. Contributing to his fame and reputation is a slender volume of Stoic philosophy which served as a kind of diary while he was involved in military campaigns, the Meditations, a book which can be described as an aureus libellus, a little golden book.
The sources for understanding Marcus and his reign are varied but generally disappointing. There is no major historian. The chief literary sources are the biography in the Historia Augusta, as well as those of Hadrian, Antoninus, Verus, and Avidius Cassius. Debate about this collection of imperial biographies has been heated and contentious for more than a century. In all likelihood, it is the work of a single author writing in the last years of the fourth-century. The information offered ranges from the precisely accurate to the wildly imaginative.
Cassius Dio, who wrote in the decade of the 230s, produced a long history of the empire which has survived, for our period, only in an abbreviated version. Fourth century historians, such as Aurelius Victor and Eutropius, occasionally furnish bits of information. Marcus' teacher, Fronto, a distinguished orator and rhetorician, is extremely useful. Papyri, inscriptions, coins, legal writings, and some of the church writers, such as Tertullian, Eusebius, and Orosius, are very important. Archaeology and art history, with their interpretation of monuments, make the history of Marcus' principate literally visible and offer important clues for understanding the context of his actions.
Early Life
He was born M. Annius Verus on April 26, 121, the scion of a distinguished family of Spanish origin (PIR2 A697). His father was Annius Verus (PIR2 A696), his mother Domitia Lucilla (PIR2 D183). His grandfather held his second consulate in that year and went on to reach a third in 126, a rare distinction in the entire history of the principate, and also served Hadrian as city prefect. The youth's education embraced both rhetoric and philosophy; his manner was serious, his intellectual pursuits deep and devoted, so that the emperor Hadrian took an interest in him and called him "Verissimus," "Most truthful," by punning on his name. He received public honors from an early age and seems to have long been in Hadrian's mind as a potential successor. When Hadrian's first choice as successor, L. Ceionius Commodus, died before his adoptive father, the second choice proved more fruitful. The distinguished senator T. Aurelius Fulvus Boionius Arrius Antoninus, from Cisalpine Gaul, did succeed Hadrian, whose arrangements for the succession planned for the next generation as well. He required Antoninus to adopt the young Verus, now to be known as M. Aelius Aurelius Verus, as well as Commodus' son, henceforth known as L. Aelius Aurelius Commodus (PIR2 C606). The former was a bit more than seventeen years old, the latter was eight.
Career under Antoninus Pius
The long tenure of Antoninus Pius proved one of the most peaceful and prosperous in Roman history. The emperor himself was disinclined to military undertakings and never left Italy during his reign. Disturbances to the pax Romana occurred on the fringes of empire. Responses were decisive and successful, with legates in charge in the provinces. As a consequence, neither Caesar gained military experience nor was shown to the armies, a failing which later could have proved decisive and disastrous. Marcus rose steadily through the cursus honorum, holding consulates in 140 and 145, combining magistracies with priesthoods. He received the tribunicia potestas in 147, and perhaps also imperium proconsulare. Yet he never neglected the artes liberals. His closest contacts were with Fronto (c.95-c.160), the distinguished rhetorician and orator. His acquaintance included many other distinguished thinkers, such as Herodes Atticus (c.95-177), the Athenian millionaire and sophist, and Aelius Aristides (117-c.181), two of whose great speeches have survived and which reveal much of the mood and beliefs of the age. Yet it was Epictetus (c.50-c.120) who had the greatest philosophical impact and made him a firm Stoic. In the year 161 Marcus celebrated his fortieth birthday, a figure of noble appearance and unblemished character. He was leading a life which gave him as much honor and glory as he could have desired, probably much more than his private nature enjoyed, yet his life, and that of the empire, was soon to change. The emperor died on March 7, but not before clearly indicating to magistrates and senate alike his desire that Marcus succeed him by having the statue of Fortuna, which had been in his bedroom, transferred to Marcus. There was no opposition, no contrary voice, to his succession. He immediately chose his brother as co-emperor, as Hadrian had planned. From the beginning of the year they were joint consuls and held office for the entire year. Their official titulature was now Imperator Caesar M. Aurelius Antoninus Augustus and Imperator Caesar L. Aurelius Verus Augustus. The military qualities adumbrated by the word Imperator were soon much in demand, for the empire was under pressure in the year 161 in Britain, in Raetia, and in the east, where Parthia once again posed a significant danger.
The Parthian War (161-166)
The incursion in northern Britain and the difficulties along the Danube were soon satisfactorily managed by legates. The danger in the East was of a different magnitude. Tensions between Rome and Parthia had intensified in the last years of Antoninus' reign over control of Armenia, the vast buffer state which had often aroused enmity between the two powers, since each wished to be able to impose a king favorable to its interests. With Antoninus' death and the uncertainty attendant upon a new emperor (in this case two, a dyarchy, for the first time in Rome's history), the Parthian monarch, Vologaeses III, struck rapidly, placed his own candidate upon the Armenian throne, and inflicted severe setbacks upon the Roman forces sent to oppose him. Marcus decided to send his colleague Lucius Verus, whose imperial prestige would underscore the seriousness of the empire's response. Verus lacked military experience and was sorely lacking in the attributes of leadership and command; further, he was notorious for being chiefly interested in amusements and luxury. But Marcus surrounded him with several of the best generals at the empire's disposal, chief among them Avidius Cassius (c.130-175) (PIR2 A1402). From 162 on, Rome's successes and conquests were extensive and decisive. Most of Parthia's significant cities and strongholds, such as Seleucia and Ctesiphon, were stormed and destroyed, and the army's movements eastward recalled the movements of Alexander the Great some five centuries earlier. By 166, Parthia had capitulated and a Roman nominee sat on the Armenian throne. The victory appeared to be the most decisive since Trajan's conquest of Dacia, but, when Verus returned to Italy with his triumphant army, there came also a devastating plague, which had enormous effect on all provinces.
As is the case with all ancient diseases, it is almost impossible to identify this one. In all likelihood, however, it was smallpox; how severe the toll was is debated. Clearly, it cast a pall over the triumph celebrated by the two emperors, who were honored with the titles Armeniacus and Parthicus. The last years of this decade were dominated by efforts to overcome the plague and provide succour to its victims. But already in 166, the German tribes smashed the Danubian limes, threatening the empire's stability and even existence, more than Parthia had ever done. The first campaigns were punctuated by the death of Verus in 169, leaving Marcus as sole emperor. And so began the most difficult period of his life.
The German Wars
Early in 169, the Marcomanni and Quadi crossed the Danube, penetrated the intervening provinces, and entered Italy. The culmination of their onslaught was a siege of Aquileia. The effect upon the inhabitants of the peninsula was frightful. This was the first invasion of Italy since the late second century B.C., when the Cimbri and Teutones had been separately crushed by Marius. Perhaps more vivid in the collective imagination was the sack of Rome by the Gauls in 387, when the city was saved only by the payment of ransom.
The two emperors hastened north, after a rapid mobilization of forces, which included the drafting of slaves, since the manpower potential of the empire had been so impaired by the consequences of the plague and the losses and troop commitments in the East. Verus died while in the north; Marcus returned to Rome with the body and gave his brother full honors. He then turned north again and began his counterattacks against the barbarians. He did not know it at the time, but he was destined to spend most of his remaining years on the northern frontier. The only interlude was caused by revolt in the east.
We have no record of Marcus' ultimate intentions in these campaigns, yet the various stages were clear. First and foremost, the enemy had to be driven out of Italy and then into their own territory beyond the Danube. He strove to isolate the tribes and then defeat them individually, so that the ultimate manpower superiority of the empire and its greater skill in warfare and logistics could more easily be brought to bear. It was a successful strategy, as one tribe after another suffered defeat and reestablished ties with Rome. But it was a time-consuming and expensive operation, requiring the recruitment of two new legions, II Italica and III Italica, the construction of many new camps, such as the legionary fortress at Regensburg, with success accruing year by year. He intended to create two new provinces, Marcomannia and Sarmatia, thereby eliminating the Hungarian Plain and the headwaters of the Elbe as staging areas for invasion.
This steady, slow progress was interrupted in 175 by the action of the distinguished general Avidius Cassius, governor of Syria, who claimed the empire for himself. Whether he responded to a rumor of Marcus' death or, as gossip had it, conspired with Marcus' wife, the emperor's response was quick and decisive. Leaving the northern wars, he traveled to the East, but Avidius was killed before Marcus arrived in the region. After spending time settling affairs and showing himself to some of the provinces, with particular attention shown to Athens, where he was initiated into the Eleusinian mysteries, as Hadrian and Verus had been. He returned to Italy and soon answered the call to duty once more on the northern frontier. He took with him as colleague his son Commodus, now merely sixteen years old but already long since marked out as his father's intended successor. The military campaigns proved successful, but in the spring of 180, when Marcus died, at least one more year of warfare was necessary for the attainment of the grand enterprise. Marcus recommended to Commodus continuation of the war, but the new emperor was eager to return to Rome and the ease and luxury of the imperial court and entered into a peace agreement. Never again was Rome to hold the upper hand in its dealings with the Germanic tribes beyond the now reestablished borders of the empire.
Administrative and Religious Policy
Marcus was a conscientious and careful administrator who devoted much attention to judicial matters. His appointments to major administrative positions were for the most part admirable. Difficult tasks were put in the charge of the most capable men; he was not afraid of comparison with his subordinates. Social mobility continued as it had been under his predecessors, with men from the provinces advancing into the upper echelons of the Roman aristocracy. Those of humble birth could make a good career; such a one was Pertinax (126-193), a gifted general, who in early 193 became emperor for a space of less than three months.
The judicial administration of Italy was put in the hands of iuridici, who represented the emperor and thus spoke with his authority. This was a practice which had been established by Hadrian but had been allowed to lapse by Antoninus. The centralization of government continued apace. The imperial finances were sorely stretched by the almost continuous wars. Trajan had brought great wealth, Decebalus' treasure, into the empire after his conquest of Dacia. No such profit awaited Marcus. When preparing for the northern wars, he auctioned off much of the imperial palace's valuables. In spite of the enormous expenses of war, Commodus found ample funds upon his accession as sole emperor for his expenditures and amusements.
Although Marcus was a devoted thinker and philosopher, he was deeply religious, at least outwardly. The state cult received full honor, and he recognized the validity of other people's beliefs, so that the variety of religions in the vast extent of the empire caused no difficulties for inhabitants or government, with one significant exception. The Christians were not hampered by any official policy; indeed the impact of the church spread enormously in the second century. Yet their availability as scapegoats for local crises made them subject to abuse or worse. There was violence against them in 167, and perhaps the worst stain on Marcus' principate stemmed from the pogrom of Christians in Lugdunum in southern France in 177. He did not cause it, nor, on the other hand, did he or his officials move to stop it. Indeed, Tertullian called him a friend of Christianity. Yet the events were a precursor of what would come in the century and a quarter which followed.
Building Programs and Monuments
Many of Marcus' predecessors transformed the face of the capital with their building programs, either by the vast range of their undertaking or by the extraordinary significance of individual monuments. Others did very little to leave a tangible mark. Marcus fell into the latter group. There is record of very few monuments for which he and his brother were responsible. Very early in their reign they honored the deceased Antoninus with a column in the Campus Martius, no longer in situ but largely surviving. The shaft, which seems not to have been sculpted, was used for the restoration of Augustus' obelisk, now in Piazza Montecitorio, in the eighteenth century. The base, which was sculpted on all four sides, is now on display in the Vatican Museum. The chief feature is the apotheosis of the emperor and his long deceased wife, the elder Faustina, as they are borne to heaven. Also presented on this relief are two eagles and personifications of the goddess Roma and of the Campus Martius, represented as a young male figure.
There were three arches which commemorated the military achievements of the two emperors. No trace has been found of an early monument to Verus. Two arches later honored Marcus, both of which have disappeared but have left significant sculptural remains. The eight rectangular reliefs preserved on the Arch of Constantine came from one arch. Similarly, the three reliefs displayed in the stairwell of the Conservatori Museum on the Capitoline Hill came from another. One relief has disappeared from the latter monument.
Certainly the best known monument of Marcus' principate is the column, which rises from Piazza Colonna. It is twin to Trajan's column in height and design, although the artistic craftsmanship of the reliefs which envelop the shaft is much inferior. The subject is Marcus' campaigns against the Marcomanni and Sarmati in the years 172-75. The most interesting panel represents the famous rainstorm, when the army, overwhelmed by drought, was suddenly saved by the divine intervention of rain. Although begun in the latter part of the decade, the column was not completed until 193, when Septimius Severus had become emperor.
The famous equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius, which survived the centuries near San Giovanni in Laterano because the rider was identified as Constantine, no longer greets the visitor to the Capitoline, where Michelangelo had placed it in the sixteenth century. It was removed in the 1980s because pollution was destroying it. After careful treatment and restoration, it is now displayed within the museum, with a replica placed in the center of the piazza.
Although outside Rome, mention should be made of the monumental frieze commemorating Lucius Verus' victory over the Parthians in 165. It was an ornament of the city of Ephesus; the extensive sculptural remains are now in the Ephesus Museum in Vienna.
Family
As part of Hadrian's plans for his succession, when Ceionius Commodus was his choice, Marcus was betrothed to the latter's daughter. But when Ceionius died and Antoninus became Hadrian's successor, that arrangement was nullified and Marcus was chosen for the Emperor's daughter, the younger Faustina (PIR2 A716). She had been born in 129, was hence eight years younger than he. They were married in 145; the marriage endured for thirty years. She bore him thirteen children, of whom several died young; the most important were a daughter, Lucilla, and a son Commodus. Lucilla was deployed for political purposes, married first to Lucius Verus in 164, when she was seventeen, and then, after his death, to Claudius Pompeianus Quintianus of Antioch, a much older man who was an important associate of her father /ii]PIR2 C973). Commodus became joint-emperor with his father in 177 and three years later ruled alone.
Faustina's reputation suffered much abuse. She was accused of employing poison and of murdering people, as well as being free with her favors with gladiators, sailors, and also men of rank, particularly Avidius Cassius. Yet Marcus trusted her implicitly and defended her vigorously. She accompanied him on several campaigns and was honored with the title mater castrorum. She was with him in camp at Halala in southern Cappadocia in the winter of 175 when she died in an accident. Marcus dedicated a temple to her honor and had the name of the city changed to Faustinopolis.
Death and Succession
In early 180, while Marcus and Commodus were fighting in the north, Marcus became ill. Which disease carried him off we do not know, but for some days Marcus took no food or drink, being now eager to die. He died on March 17, in the city of Vindobona, although one source reports that it was in Sirmium. His ashes were brought to Rome and placed in Hadrian's mausoleum. Commodus succeeded to all power without opposition, and soon withdrew from the war, thereby stymieing his father's designs and ambitions. It was a change of rulers that proved disastrous for people and empire. Dio called the succession a change from a golden kingdom to one of iron and rust.
Reputation
Gibbon called Marcus "that philosophic monarch," a combination of adjective and noun which sets Marcus apart from all other Roman emperors. His renown has, in subsequent centuries, suffered little, although he was by no means a "perfect" person. He was perhaps too tolerant of other people's failings, he himself used opium. The abundance of children whom his wife bore him included, alas, a male who was to prove one of Rome's worst rulers. How much better it would have been if Marcus had had no son and had chosen a successor by adoption, so that the line of the five good emperors, Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus, Marcus, could have been extended. It was not to be, and for that Marcus must accept some responsibility.
Yet he was a man of ability and a sense of duty who sacrificed his own delights and interests to the well-being of the state. He was capax imperii, he did his best, and history has been kind to him. As Hamlet said to Horatio, when awaiting the appearance of the ghost of his father,
"He was a man! Take him for all in all, I shall not look upon his like again." (I 2, 187-88)
His memory remains vivid and tactile because of the famous column, the equestrian statue, and his slender volume of thoughts, written in Greek, the Meditations, from which I choose two quotations with which to conclude:
"If mind is common to us, then also the reason, whereby we are reasoning beings, is common. If this be so, then also the reason which enjoins what is to be done or left undone is common. If this be so, law also is common; if this be so, we are citizens; if this be so, we are partakers in one constitution; if this be so, the Universe is a kind of Commonwealth." (4.4)
"At dawn of day, when you dislike being called, have this thought ready: 'I am called to man's labour; why then do I make a difficulty if I am going out to do what I was born to do and what I was brought into the world for?'" (5.1; both in Farquharson's translation)
Copyright (C) 2001, Herbert W. Benario.
Published: De Imperatoribus Romanis: An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Rulers and their Families http://www.roman-emperors.org/startup.htm. Used by permission.
Edited by J. P. Fitzgerald, Jr.Cleisthenes
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